SECTION II 
PRINCIPLES OF THE GIRL SCOUTS 
The Motto: 
Be Prepared 
A Girl Scout learns to swim, not only as an athletic 
accomplishment, but so that she can save life. She passes 
her simple tests in child care and home nursing and 
household efficiency in order to be ready for the big 
duties when they come. She learns the important facts 
about her body, so as to keep it the fine machine it was 
meant to be. And she makes a special point of wood- 
craft and camp lore, not only for the fun and satisfac- 
tion they bring in themselves, but because they are the 
best emergency course we have today. A Girl Scout 
who has passed her First Class test is as ready to help 
herself, her home and her Country as any girl of her 
age should be expected to prove. 
The Slogan: 
“Do a Good Turn Daily” 
This simple recipe for making a very little girl per- 
form every day some slight act of kindness for somebody 
else is the seed from which grows the larger plant of 
helping the world along — the steady attitude of the older 
Scout. And this grows later into the great tree of organ- 
ized, practical community service for the grown Scout — 
the ideal of every American woman today. 
The Pledge: 
“I pledge allegiance to my flag, and to the 
Republic for which it stands; one nation in- 
divisible, with liberty and justice for all.” 
This pledge, though not original with the Girl Scouts, 
expresses in every phrase their principles and practice. 
Practical patriotism, in war and peace, is the corner- 
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